Dragon King
by Descendants' Eyes
Summary: In ancient times, a human was chosen to become the Dragon King. Now watch, as his story unfolds. AU. No yaoi.
1. History

**Summary**:

In ancient times, a human was chosen to become the Dragon King. Now watch, as his story unfolds.

**Disclaimer:**

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! It belongs to Kazuki Takahashi.

**Story Rating:**

Rated T for some violence, minor coarse language, and minor suggestive adult themes.

**Chapter Rating:**

Rated K for no coarse language, violence, or adult themes.

**Notes:**

(~_This is just stuff I am saying to you and is not part of the story._~)

_Flashback_

'Thoughts'

* * *

><p>Dragon King<p>

Dragon King

* * *

><p>Back in ancient times, in another world, dragons raged a great war against one another.<p>

Those of fire fought those of water. Those of wind fought those of earth. And those of metal fought those of wood.

In the midst of the fighting, the Dragon King, the one who ruled over all dragons, was killed by a dragon from each element. With its death came peace, but another king was needed.

Fighting broke out once again over who would be the new Dragon King. Each dragon wanted the new king to be one of its own element. Another war was about to begin, when an elder dragon suggested that they turn a human into their new king.

Many were outraged. Most thought it disgraceful to have a human for a king, but what if they turned him into a dragon.

Many dragons searched for one which would prove to be the rightful king. One fair and kind, but firm and resolute when needed.

Eventually, they found the perfect king.

While the chosen one slept, the dragons captured him and took him back to their world.

To become the Dragon King.

* * *

><p>This story is kind of inspired by <strong>T.W.W.<strong>'s story _The Hedingham Chronicles_. If you have not read this story then I highly recommend you do so. It is an amazing story and one of the best on fanfiction. The whole dragon thing kind of inspired this story.

The rating for this story may go up. We'll just have to see as it goes along.

I'm thinking about not making this yaoi or puzzleshipping. For now, I plan on Atem and Yugi just being friends. If I do so, Yugi will be a boy. I might include other non-yaoi pairings though. We'll see.

Sorry the first chapter is so short.

Please Review.

* * *

><p>Started: Monday, February 21, 2011<p>

Finished: Saturday, March 05, 2011


	2. Dreams

**Summary**:

In ancient times, a human was chosen to become the Dragon King. Now watch, as his story unfolds.

**Disclaimer:**

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! It belongs to Kazuki Takahashi.

**Story Rating:**

Rated T for some violence, minor coarse language, or minor suggestive adult themes.

**Chapter Rating:**

Rated K+ for minor action violence without serious injury or mild coarse language.

* * *

><p>Dragon King<p>

Dreams

* * *

><p>Yugi watched as the man screamed in pain.<p>

He had no idea where he was. It looked like some kind of massive stone room. The ceiling was probably several hundred feet above his head. The walls were even wider apart. And in the center of the room, huge forms surrounded a table where someone was screaming.

Yugi couldn't see exactly what the things were in front of him. All he saw were their black silhouettes. A small stone table, or at least small compared to the room, stood in the middle of the group. A man laid there as he thrashed and screamed. Yugi couldn't see his features either. He just saw the silhouette.

Suddenly, the man froze and his screams stopped. Yugi was about to say something when the man's eyes snapped open and Yugi jumped back from the blood red eyes that looked straight at him.

The man jerked his arms, breaking free of the chains, and jumped right in from of him. What looked liked wings burst from the man's back and a tail appeared behind him. Then, the man seemed to puff out his chest and a _roar_ of that of a beast came from his mouth before he sprang at Yugi.

"Ahhh! . . . Ow."

Yugi rubbed his head as he opened his eyes. He was back in his room.

"What?" Carefully, Yugi looked around. Yeah, it was definitely his room. Yugi sighed. "It must have been a dream."

"Yugi, are you alright?" Yugi looked up as his grandfather entered the room. "I heard you screaming and then a thud." Solomon analyzed Yugi's position, angled in his blanket on the floor. "Did you fall out of bed?" He couldn't help but chuckle.

"Y-Yeah," Yugi said hastily as he quickly untangled himself from the blanket. "I just had some _weird_ dream is all. I'm okay, Grandpa." It was then Yugi noticed what time it was. "Grandpa! You let me sleep in?"

"Don't worry, my boy." Solomon waved his hand. "You worked so hard yesterday that I thought you could do with a little extra sleep."

"Are you kidding me?" Yugi asked sarcastically as he ran to his closet and started pulling out clothes. "Kaiba's going to _kill_ me!"

"I already called Mokuba. He said it was fine."

"Mokuba isn't the one who can fire me," Yugi countered.

"Oh," Solomon said, annoyed. "Kaiba isn't going to fire you. Now get going."

"Alright." Yugi ran from the room and grabbed an apple from the bowl on the kitchen table. "See you later, Grandpa!"

"Have a good time, Yugi!" Solomon closed the door and flipped the "Closed" sign to "Open".

* * *

><p>"Come on, Seto!" Mokuba whined to his brother. "You had Yugi here to three o'clock last night! He has to sleep sometime!"<p>

"It's not my fault that he can't handle running a company," the elder Kaiba sneered. "I still can't believe that fool Pegasus is giving _Yugi Motto_ all rights and ownership of Industrial Illusions."

"Well I can," Mokuba beamed as he spoke. "He loves Yugi. I mean, after Duelist Kingdom, Pegasus started being really nice. He even invited all of us out there for a _week_ for a vacation." Mokuba paused with a frown. "I can't believe he's dying."

Pegasus Crawford had been diagnosed with terminal cancer in his lungs. He was predicted to live only about one or two years, three at tops, judging by the damage to his lungs. A few weeks after he found out, he had contacted Yugi and offered him to chance to take over his entire company, since he had no heir.

"At least he's trying!" Mokuba continued when Seto did not answer. "Most people wouldn't even try to do what Yugi is. He had no business knowledge. No financial knowledge. Nothing. Most people wouldn't have the guts to learn all of a sudden like Yugi is."

"Humph. Whatever."

"I'm here!" a voice yelled before Yugi ran in and closed the door behind him. "Sorry . . . I'm . . . late," he said as he panted.

"Yugi!" Mokuba yelled with a smile. Then he noticed Yugi's labored breathing. "Did you run all the way from the Game Shop?"

"Uh, yeah," Yugi said hesitantly.

"But that's nearly half way across the city!" Mokuba ran to the little table against the wall. "Here's some water," he said as he handed Yugi a bottle of water.

"Thanks, Mokuba," Yugi thanked after the chugged down the whole bottle in one go.

Mokuba then noticed the shadows under his eyes. "You look awful, Yugi."

Yugi ran a hand over his face. "I had a dream last night."

Seto snorted. "A dream? What was it, fairies and unicorns?"

Yugi ignored him. "There was somebody screaming in pain and . . . and something happened to him."

"What do you mean?" asked Mokuba.

"The man, he suddenly wings and a tail, and then he roared at me. It sounded like a lion, only different."

"I think you have to watching too many movies, Yugi," said Seto.

"I don't know," Yugi murmured. "For some reason, I feel like it is important." He sighed. "Oh well. Anyway, you're supposed to teach me what 'credit' is today, Kaiba."

"Woopee."

* * *

><p>Yugi collapsed onto his bed as soon as he walked in. Who knew credit was so freaking important!<p>

Yugi barely managed to get up long enough to change into his pajamas. He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

When Yugi opened his eyes, he saw a familiar sight.

His old friend Atem stood in front of him. He was dressed in his royal attire of a tunic, a shirt, his violet cape, and his gold jewelry.

Atem was facing away from Yugi. His arms hung from his sides and his head was lowered.

"Atem!"

At his yell, Atem turned to look at him, and Yugi gasped.

Atem stared at him with an unreadable expression in his red eyes. His eyes were slit like that of a snake, which contracted and expanded periodically.

"Atem? What happened to you?"

Atem growled, literally growled, as he turned to face Yugi completely. His teeth were like fangs.

"Run, child, run." Atem's voice didn't sound normal. It sounded like someone was speaking at the same time as Atem. "Run while you still can."

"Why?" Yugi asked as he took a step back. Atem took a step forward at the same time. "What are you going to do to me?"

"_I_ won't hurt you," Atem growled. "My bearer would be very upset with me if I did so."

"Your bearer?" Yugi asked distracted. He stepped closer to Atem. "And who exactly is your bearer?"

Atem spread his arms. "Why, the one you see before you of course." Atem narrowed his eyes. "I won't let you harm my bearer."

Yugi glared at him. "Why would I hurt Atem?"

Suddenly, Atem was right behind him and wrapped his stronger than normal arms around Yugi's chest. "Oh, you won't do it on purpose. But if you were hurt, or killed, Atem would be very upset, and I won't let that happen." Atem lowered his lips to Yugi's ear. "So run, Yugi Motto. Run before they catch you and _him_ both."

Yugi woke up to the sound of glass shattering.

Springing out of bed, Yugi ran to the door to his room and flung it open. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Solomon emerging from his room as well. Together, they ran down the stairs into the store section of the building.

And lying naked on the floor, was Atem.

The front door to the shop was blown open, as though by a bomb. Part of the wall was still on fire. Another part was frozen solid. Dirt covered the floor.

Yugi ran up to Atem, who laid face-down, and turned him over. He checked for a pulse, and sighed when he felt a normal heartbeat. Then, he placed his head on Atem's chest to listen for breathing and was so happy when he heard the "whoosh" of air entering Atem's lungs.

Staring at Atem then, Yugi remembered his dream. The not-completely-Atem Atem had told him to run before someone found him and someone else. Did he mean the real Atem?

* * *

><p>The term "bearer" was inspired by <strong>SilverWing147<strong>'s story _The Black Tatoo_. It's a great story. Check it out. I couldn't think of a better term. Host isn't very good. You'll see why later.

So how you guys liking this, hm?

Please Review.

* * *

><p>Started: Saturday, March 05, 2011<p>

Finished: Saturday, March 05, 2011


	3. Attack

**Summary**:

In ancient times, a human was chosen to become the Dragon King. Now watch, as his story unfolds.

**Disclaimer:**

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! It belongs to Kazuki Takahashi.

I do not speak, write, or have anything to do with the Japanese language.

**Story Rating:**

Rated T for some violence, minor coarse language, or minor suggestive adult themes.

**Chapter Rating:**

Rated T for some violence, minor coarse language, and minor suggestive adult themes.

* * *

><p>Dragon King<p>

Attack

* * *

><p>Yugi didn't go to work the next morning.<p>

"Kaiba, look, okay, okay, but, okay, now listen, something weird happened last night and, yes I do, anyway, somehow Atem's back so I can't come in today. Bye." And with that, Yugi Motto hung up on Seto Kaiba.

'I'm going to regret that later.'

After placing the phone back in the receiver to charge, Yugi walked back up to his room where Atem laid on his bed.

Yugi had scrounged up some clothes, or at least some underwear and a pair of pants, for him to wear.

"Wake up soon, Yami," he whispered before he joined his grandfather downstairs for a day of working in the shop.

* * *

><p>By the time Yugi walked back into his room, it was already dark out.<p>

Yugi pulled he chair from his desk to the bed and sat down. "Oh, Yami."

'How on earth did he get here? He should be in the Afterlife.'

Atem hadn't even so much as twitched since he had mysteriously arrived. The only sign of movement was the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed.

"What happened to you, Atem?" Yugi asked no one as he reached up to Atem face.

Suddenly, Atem's wrist snatched his wrist in a firm grip and Atem's eyes snapped open, revealing that same blood red, which trained in on him with the pupil contracted to a mere slit.

"Oh it's you," Atem said sarcastically as he let go of Yugi's wrist, his pupils relaxing, who rubbed the sore appendage. "I though I told you to run."

"What?" Yugi asked startled.

Atem glared at him. "I told you to run and take him with you. They shall be here soon, and if they find you they will kill you." Atem suddenly growled out loud. "You're supposed to be smart! Atem says you're smart. You were supposed to have figured this out already!" Atem was yelling at him by now. "You're going to get yourself killed because you weren't smart enough to figure out—!"

Atem suddenly froze; then, he was suddenly clutching his head and yelling in pain. "Not now! No! Not now! You're not safe yet! I have to get you safe!" Atem's back arched as he yelled louder than ever, then he fell limb on the bed.

After a few seconds, which felt more like hours to Yugi, Atem began to groan and shift on the bed. He turned so he was facing Yugi and his eyes blinked open, his eyes their natural violet. "Yugi . . . "

"Uh . . . Yami," Yugi whispered. He didn't know what to think.

There was a moment of silence before, "Yugi!" Atem yelled as he sat up. Atem eyes darted everywhere, taking in the familiar room before focusing on Yugi once more. "Yugi, is that really you?"

Yugi stared a moment before smiling. "Yeah, it's really me." He moved do that he was sitting next to Atem on the bed. "How do you feel?"

"Tired." Atem's eyed drooped as he finally felt the fatigue. "But what am I doing here?"

"I don't know," Yugi answered earnestly. "I was hoping you could tell me." Yugi stood and smiled. "Go to sleep. You're tired, and I'm hungry. I'm going to go make lunch and let Grandpa know you've woken up. I'll come check on you in a little bit." He turned toward the door. "Have a nice nap," he said cheerfully as he closed the door.

Atem chuckled. "He hasn't changed." Atem looked around the room again. It was pretty much the same.

'I wonder how long it has been since I left. Oh well.'

His drowsiness became the better of him. He laid back down and with a yawn, fell back to sleep.

* * *

><p>When Atem next opened his eyes, he couldn't believe what he saw. It was Yugi's bedroom, just as he remembered. The same green walls, same posters, same messy desk. Same <em>everything<em>. And it helped comfort him immensely.

With a chuckle, Atem slipped out of bed. He didn't know if he would be able to stand so he was careful and moved slowly.

Atem looked around the room again, wondering where Yugi could be. He walked over to the door and entered the hallway.

Hearing noises from below, he walked over to the stairs and walked down as quietly as he could. At the bottom of the stairs he saw Yugi and Solomon sitting on the couch eating some rice and scrambled eggs.

"Yugi," Atem said to get the boy's attention.

At the sound of his name, Yugi looked over his shoulders and was surprised to see Atem standing behind him. Nearly chocking on his mouthful of food, he placed his plate down and ran to Atem. "Yami, you're awake!"

Atem grunted as Yugi wrapped his arms tightly around him. Rubbing Yugi's back, Atem said. "Hello, Yugi."

Atem's casual tone made Yugi laugh. "Hello, Yami."

Atem chuckled as he looked around the room. His eyes settled on Solomon. The old man looked nearly the same, but there were some changes. His skin seemed more wrinkled on his face. He bent his back forward a little, as though it hurt to stand up straight. His breathing didn't seem to come quite as easily, just barely wheezing.

"Hello, Mr. Motto."

Atem's never ending formality made Soloman laugh. "Atem, my boy, don't you go back to calling me that! You know you are just as much as family to me as Yugi is!"

"Yes, Grandpa."

Solomon laughed even harder.

Atem finally looked down at Yugi with a confused expression. "Yugi, why am I here?"

Yugi looked like he was angry for a second, before his expression became sad. "I was hoping you could tell _me_."

Atem hummed his acknowledgement that they had no idea how or why he was there. His eyes traveled the room before they landed back on Yugi. "It's nice to see you again."

Yugi smiled a brilliant smile and hugged Atem harder around the waist. "I know. I missed you."

Atem's hands moved from Yugi's back to wrap around the boy in a return hug. "I missed you too."

"So," Solomon said a little louder than normal, "are you hungry, Atem?"

"Yes," Atem said immediately, making Yugi laugh. "I feel like I could eat a hippo."

Yugi pulled away with a smile and pulled on Atem's hands. "Come on, then. Let's get you some breakfast." As he led Atem into the kitchen, he said, "After you eat, we can go out and spend the day together."

Atem laughed softly as he said. "Alright, Yugi."

* * *

><p>Yugi and Atem really did spend the day together.<p>

They didn't really _do_ much, just walked around and talked. They went to the park and watched the ducks swim in the pond. They walked down the busy street holding hands. That made them laugh when people looked at them strangely, thinking they were gay.

The sun had just set, when Yugi said that they should start heading back to the Game Shop before Solomon got mad.

As they walked back, Atem would occasionally hold his head and groan, but every time Yugi asked what was wrong, Atem would just dismiss it.

"I'm fine. It's just a migraine."

But a few minutes passed, and the _migraine_ seemed to get worse.

"Are you alright, Yami?" Yugi asked worriedly as Atem grunted in pain once again.

"I-I'm _fine_!" The last word came out as a yell as Atem fell to his knees, desperately holding his throbbing head. Atem screamed again and pressed his forehead to the ground, unable to hold himself up.

"Yami! Yami, what's going on?" Yugi had his hands on each of Atem's shoulders, trying to decide if he should run to someone's house and call 911.

Then, suddenly, Atem's screams broke off.

"Y-Yami?" Yugi asked shakily. "Are you okay n—"

Atem's head had snapped up so fast that Yugi had missed the motion. Atem looked at him quickly, making Yugi gasp, before he quickly stood and scanned their surrounding area furiously, his body constantly turning.

What had made Yugi gasp was that Atem's eyes had returned to that crimson slitted state.

"Yami . . . what is going on?" Yugi was fed up with Atem's eyes changing colors. He wanted some answers.

Atem's head turned towards him and Atem glared at him. His lips pulled back revealing gleaming white, elongated fangs. A growl vibrated in his chest and out through clenched teeth.

The look made Yugi take a step back in his shock. "Yami . . . what . . . "

Atem suddenly jumped toward him and wrapped his arms around Yugi's waist. He took a quick glance at their surroundings before literally growling out his order at Yugi. "Hold on to me."

Shakily, Yugi wrapped his arms around Atem's waist. He buried his face into Atem's chest as a strange sound vibrated through the air. Yugi didn't get a chance to see what it was when they were suddenly thrown into the air.

Yugi screamed as the wind whooshed in his ears. Even though he knew he would regret it immediately, he peaked out of the corner of his eye to see what was going on. With a gasp, his eyes flew wide as he watched the city flow beneath him.

Somehow, they were flying. They were literally flying above the city of Domino. The city was beautiful at night, all the neon signs lit up, the windows of buildings casting light outward. It took Yugi a second to realize that this shouldn't be possible.

Yugi turned his head back to Atem, about to ask him how they were flying, but the question froze on his tongue at what he saw.

At least he knew how Atem was flying.

Huge wings stretched out on either side of them. They were the same color of Atem's skin, that rich Egyptian tan, and shaped like a bat's wings, thin bones connected by a thin layer of skin. Whenever a light shone from the other side of a wing, Yugi could catch a glimpse of the hundreds of blood vessels under that skin.

Then it really kicked in.

"You have wings!"

Yugi's sudden and rather loud yell startled Atem making him wobble in air for a moment before he stabled himself.

Atem glanced down at him, annoyed. "Shout it to the world, why don't you?"

The comment made Yugi blush. "S-Sorry. It just took me by surprise."

"It's fine." Those two words reminded Yugi so much of the real Atem. "I expected much worse honestly."

Yugi glared at him lightly. "So, where are we going?"

"To your home," Atem answered. "Once we get there you have to pack quick, you hear me. Take only the essentials. Say farewell to your grandfather too. It may be a while before you see him again."

"What do you mean?" Yugi asked, not comprehending. "Pack for what? Where are we going?"

"We have to leave," Atem said urgently. "There are . . . creatures after me. They will use your grandfather to get to you and you to get to me. We have to leave as to not put your grandfather in danger. If he doesn't know where we're going or what we're going, they won't be able to use him against us."

"Are they after _you_ or _Yami_?" Yugi asked.

Atem growled without looking at him. "I _am_ Atem."

"No your not," Yugi countered immediately. "I know Yami, and you are most certainly not him."

Atem finally glared at him. "Did it ever occur to you, Yugi, that maybe not all of my memories were restored during the Memory World. That there are some memories I tried to hide even from myself."

"But why would you?" Yugi whispered so quietly he could barely hear, too stunned to speak any louder, but Atem heard him any way.

"I wanted to be rid of the dark truth. To forget all about another part of my life."

"Atem . . . " The use of his real name made Atem look at the boy with a small amount of concern in his eyes. "What happened to you?"

Atem eyes saddened for half a second before it disappeared, replaced with determination. "I will tell you later, I promise you this, but not now." Atem looked ahead and nodded ahead of him. Yugi looking in the same direction to see them approaching the Kame Game Shop.

Yugi tightened his grip as Atem titled slightly so they could land on the roof. His skylight window would be the perfect place to get in and out quick.

Atem's wings flapped furiously as he landed as lightly as possible, as to not hurt Yugi and to not scare the living daylights out of the old man downstairs.

His wings flared out after he had landed to help keep him balanced on the tilted roof. He let go of Yugi as the boy bent down to open the window. His hands paused before he could open the window.

"Yugi?" Atem asked as he noticed Yugi not moving. He got no answer. Bending down slightly as he asked in a softer tone, "Yugi?" Then he noticed the tears hit the glass.

Reaching out, Atem placed his hand under Yugi's chin, making the boy look at him. The sight made him gasp.

Yugi's normally bright and cheerful eyes were dulled and lifeless. Tears built in the amethyst orbs and spilled over his cheeks before falling onto the shingled roof.

"Oh, Yugi," Atem sighed before wrapping his arms around the boy and pulling him to his chest.

Yugi stiffened slightly at the contact before wrapping his own arms lightly around Atem. "You didn't seem to care about me that much earlier," he whispered.

Atem chuckled lightly. "I told you, Yugi. I _am _Atem. You freed me from five thousands years of self imprisoned hell. This me may not have known you, but the rest of me does. It is . . . strange . . . for me to meet someone who half of me says is a stranger and the other half says is my dearest friend."

Yugi smiled against Atem's chest. "I cannot understand how you feel, but I can try." He looked up at Atem with a shy smile on his face before he started wiping the tears from his face. "I'm sorry, you taught me to be stronger than this."

Atem literally purred as he rubbed his left cheek against Yugi's right. "Strength is one thing you are in no short supply of." Atem pulled away and smirked at Yugi. "Now, come one, short stuff, let's get packing!"

Yugi laughed at the excited tone and opened the window all the way. Jumping in, he stepped to the side and waited for Atem to follow. When there was no immediate Atem in his room, Yugi looked up to see what could be keeping him. It took him a second to figure out what.

Atem's wings were too large to fit through the small window, even when folded against his back. He would have to wait outside for Yugi to finish.

"Just stay there, Yami. I'll be back shortly. Okay?"

Atem looked angry that he was not able to follow Yugi into the room, but he nodded his head anyway.

Smiling, Yugi turned toward his closet and pulled out the blue and white bag he had used to carry the Millennium Items when they had went to Egypt. Yugi immediately began packing the essentials: shirts, pants, underwear, toothbrush, toothpaste, hair brush, socks, and deodorant.

Turning to grab his Duel Monsters deck, he glanced to his left when he though he saw movement and gapped at what he saw.

Atem stood there bent over like the Hunchback of Notre Dome. What earned Yugi's stared was the two enormous bulges protruding from Atem's back. The lumps moved slightly beneath his skin, and looked quite painful in Yugi's opinion. The lumps suddenly stilled and grew slightly larger before they slowly seemed to melt back into Atem's body.

When his back was flat again, Atem leaned back so far it would break the back of a normal person. Atem opened his, still bending back, and saw Yugi staring at him. "What?"

"What the hell was that?" Yugi asked. All these surprises were starting to really drain on him.

Atem straightened and stretched his arms up above his head until he got the satisfying pop from between his shoulder blades, the sound so loud Yugi flinched. "I wanted to some in, so I had to retract my wings." Atem turned toward Yugi with a smirk. "As you can see, they are gone."

Yugi slowly walked forward and around Atem until he could see his back. Atem had no shirt on. Yugi guessed it had ripped off when Atem had sprouted the wings. Yugi gently felt the unblemished, wing free skin.

"Does it hurt?" Yugi asked softly.

"Sometimes," Atem answered. "If I don't put them back in the correct way." Atem purposely contracted a muscle in his back and the bulges suddenly stuck an inch from Atem's skin.

The sudden appearance of the two bumps made Yugi freeze before realized that they were Atem's wings. He raised his other hand and gently rubbed the two bumps softly.

It was Atem's reaction he was unprepared for.

Atem suddenly growled, not a threatening growl, a pleased growl. He pressed his back, his wings, against Yugi's hands.

Yugi's eyes widened at the reaction. Apparently, it felt really good to have your wings rubbed. Yugi pressed harder on the bumps and felt them grow under his hands.

Before Yugi knew it, the growing bumps had become more like mountains on Atem's back.

"Yugi . . . Yugi, stop," Atem panted.

"Oh," Yugi said. With a blush, he quickly placed his hands behind his back and looked away, extremely embarrassed. "Sorry."

"It's fine," Atem said as he focused on getting his wings back in correctly.

Yugi looked away from Atem's back and continued getting packed.

"Yami?" Yugi suddenly asked.

"Yes." By now, Atem had already fully retracted his wings and had been resting on Yugi's bed.

"Would you like your deck?" At Atem's confused expression, he explained, "I mean, the one you made for the Ceremonial Duel."

Atem sat up as he stared at the cards in Yugi's hand. After a moment, he stood and walked over to where Yugi stood and took the cards from him. He looked Yugi in the eye before saying sincerely, "Thank you."

"No," Yugi said as he shook his head. "Thank _you_."

Atem smiled before kissing Yugi on the brow. "Dearou anata hiroimono yorokobi soshite koufuku." (1)

He turned as looked over the cards as he walked back to Yugi's bed.

"What language was that?" Yugi asked. "That was _not _Ancient Egyptian." He knew that much for a fact.

"No, it wasn't," Atem agreed. "Don't worry about it and finish so we can leave."

Yugi sighed before looking at his stuffed bag. "I'm all done packing, now I just got to go tell Grandpa that I'm about to disappear for who knows how long."

"I'm sorry, you know," Atem said softly as he looked the other way, away from Yugi. "That I'm taking you away from your family."

"It's okay," Yugi said with a smile. "After all, I get to see you again."

Atem looked back at him with an expression that Yugi easily recognized. It was the same expression that Atem looked at him with whenever he does or says something that surprises him.

Atem had looked at him like that during Battle City, after he had dueled Bakura, and had offered Atem the chance to rest from the duel. When he had refused to let Atem take over when Marik had been using his Millennium Rod to control Joey and forced them to duel at the harbor. And when he had watching Bakura after he had lost his duel to the evil Marik, lost his soul, he had been scolding Atem for believing that it was his fault that all those bad things was happening.

"Go say goodbye to your grandfather," Atem ordered suddenly.

But Yugi smiled anyway. "Okay." He walked out of the room and to the living room, where he found his grandfather, Solomon Motto, sitting there watching the movie Steel Magnolias.

Soloman laughed as little Jack turned and slapped Ouiser in the face and ran away, screaming in fear.

"Grandpa," Yugi said softly, but load enough for the old man to hear in his laughter.

Soloman jumped at the sudden voice. He turned to see Yugi standing at the foot of the stairs behind him. "Yugi, I thought you and Atem were still out wandering about town?"

"Yeah . . . uh," Yugi balked for second, unsure what to say, "we just got back."

Soloman's eyes narrowed in suspicion. The only door into the house part of the Game Shop was right in front of him, so there was no way the two could have gotten inside without him noticing.

"Grandpa, me and Yami . . . we . . . we have to go!" Yugi said the last part in a rush.

Soloman looked at his grandson with confusion on his face and his voice. "Go? Go where?"

Yugi sighed then answered, "Yami says that some people are after him, and that they will use me to get to him, and you to get to me. For your own protection, as well as mine, me and Yami have to go. I can't tell you where, _I_ don't even know where we're going or when we'll be back, but I'll be back eventually."

Yugi turned to go back upstairs and leave than and there so he wouldn't have to deal his grandfather's reaction, when a loud crash of breaking glass sounded from upstairs on the third floor.

"What was that?" Soloman asked, panicked.

Without answering, Yugi ran upstairs and to his room, having a sudden feeling that the sound had come from his room. Throwing the door open, Yugi stared at the sight.

Atem was bent forward slightly with his back to Yugi and hissed at the person in front like how an animal hisses in warning. His lip curled above his teeth, revealing sharp teeth and long canines.

Standing in front of Atem was a man.

He word elegant green and brown clothing. His hair was blond, but not like any blond Yugi had ever seen. It was like his hair was glowing without light. His blue eyes were stunning. The man's pointed ears reminded Yugi of elves. A sword was raised in front of him, the weapon encrusted with symbols that Yugi didn't recognize. He was poised for a fight.

The man behind the man was missing, probably destroyed by the man so he could get into the building.

The man looked at Yugi and glared. He spoke in a language unknown, but could still recognize them as an insult. "Iyashimu, hito no! Hen kare kisaki e no watashi-tachi o so!" (2)

Yugi reasoned that Atem must understand what he said, because that warning hiss turned into a threatening growl. He growled out the words, "Kare ni hanasu koto wa arimasen." (3)

The man's eyes flashed to Atem confused. "Riyū o?" (4)

Atem glared at him even worse, which was saying something considering how fiercely Atem was glaring at him already. "Watashi go sō ittakara." (5)

The man snorted before repositioning his stance. "Ningen wa tan'ni anata o doku shite iru." (6)

Angry, Atem yelled, "Karera was sōde aw arimasen!" (7)

The man growled, the human kind of growled, and sprang at Atem and pushed him to the side. Then he turned his eyes to Yugi, raised his sword, and attacked.

"No!" Atem yelled as he grabbed the man by the back of his shirt, the sword missing Yugi by less than and inch, and flung the man across the room and out of the gapping hole in the wall. He turned back to Yugi panicked. "We must go!"

Yugi nodded and raced to where his packed bag sat on his deck. Flinging the strap onto his shoulder he ran back to Atem, whose eyes were closed as he concentrated on releasing his wings.

From below, probably on the road in by the shop, the man's voice yelled. "Uddo! Kare o baindo shimasu!" (8)

Atem pushed Yugi away as cracking sounds came from the floor and the boards from under the carpet broke and rose to press against all sides of Atem making a prison. No part of Atem was visible from inside the wooden cocoon.

The man jumped up from the ground and landed on his feet in the room. He smiled at his work before looked at Yugi with a disgusted look. He turned toward Yugi, sword in hand, and walked toward him.

In his panic, Yugi stumbled and fell onto his back and the man planted his foot on Yugi's chest to hold him down.

Yugi looked up at the man who glared at him, and the man said, "Dai, ningen." (9)

The man raised his sword and brought his arm down.

Yugi could only find himself to yell, "Atem!"

A tan fist burst out of the wood cocoon, the splintered wood striking the man in the face before he could finish the blow. The man turned to the side, holding his face as blood ran down his face.

Atem kicked and punched his out of the cocoon. His anger and the adrenaline running through him were making him strong enough to force his way out. He turned to Yugi and pulled him up, slung him across his back, paused to pick up Yugi's dropped bag, and jumped out the open wall.

Yugi gave a small scream as they fell from the third floor, but the landing was soft as Atem absorbed the force of the impact. As soon as his feet hit the ground, Atem rushed off, running faster than any human.

"W-Will he k-kill Grandpa?" Yugi asked shakily.

"No." Atem turned his head to look Yugi in the eye. "I promise you, he will not be hurt."

Yugi nodded and tucked his face into Atem's back. He didn't doubt Atem words; Atem wouldn't lie to him about this, but that didn't stop him from worrying.

Finally, Atem stopped.

Yugi, who had closed eyes, opened them to see that they were in the deep in the woods outside of Domino. When he noticed that Atem was panting heavily, Yugi carefully lowered himself off his back.

With Yugi safety on his feet, Atem fell back until he was lying on his back. HE closely his eyes as he tried to get his breathing under control.

Seeing Atem's tense form, Yugi got down on his knees next to him and ran his fingers through Atem's hair. Yugi watched Atem's muscles relax.

Once his breathing was back to normal, Atem said, "We get going soon. He will come back with others. I won't be able to protect you against two Tiathro." (10)

"Tiathro?" Yugi asked in confusion.

Sitting up with a sigh, Atem explained. "The Tiathro is the name of their species. I suppose they are basically what humans call elves."

"I kind of though of that," Yugi said embarrassed. "He ears made me think of elves, but I didn't think he was an _actual_ elf." With a frown, he asked. "Why was he after you?"

"He, and probably others, are here to take me back with them to their world."

"What did I do that he attacked me?" That was one thing that confused him the most. He had just stood there, and the guy tried to kill him. "You two were speaking the same language," he accused.

Atem looked at him with a forgiving look. "To the Tiathro, humans are vile, disgusting creatures. He attacked you because he believed you had 'poisoned' me, as he put it." Atem made quotation marks with his fingers to show Yugi the quote. "He though killing you would remove whatever you had done to me that kept me from wanting to leave with him."

Yugi shivered. "They don't sound very nice."

Atem chuckled darkly. "In their world, with their own people, they are the kindest and most gentle of creatures. It is only with other species that they behave as such."

"Oh," Yugi murmured before he realized something. He looked at Atem with accusing eyes. "How do you know so much about them, if they come from another world?"

Atem looked away from him and into the woods as he answered. "Because I am, in a way, from there as well."

"But you're human," Yugi argued.

"I _was_ human, Yugi," Atem corrected, but would not look at him.

There was a moment of silence. "You're not human anymore?"

"No, I'm not." Atem's hands clenched as he spoke again. "The Seltherathem changed me." (11)

"The Seltherathem?" Yugi asked. All these foreign words were really getting on his nerves. "And what are the Seltherathem?"

Atem finally looked at him, but his eyes were hard and cold. "They are . . . the dragons of the other world."

It took Yugi a few minutes to absorb the information. If dragons changed Atem, did that mean that he was . . .

And it made sense. That was the worst part about it. The wings, slitted eyes, growling, fangs. It all made sense.

"You're a dragon." His words weren't a question.

Atem smirked at him, bearing his long fangs. "Yes, I am."

* * *

><p>(1) May you find joy and happiness. (No, it is not suppose to be Japanese. You will find out what language it's supposed to be later.)<p>

(2) Vile, human! Return him back to us at once!

(3) Do not speak to him.

(4) Why?

(5) Because I said so.

(6) The humans have just poisoned you.

(7) They have not!

(8) Wood! Bind him!

(9) Die, human.

(10) Tiathro means "magic sage"; "tia" meaning "magic" and "thro" meaning "sage". Pronounced "tea" as in the drink tea, "oth" like moth without the M, and "row" like you row a boat. "Tea-oth-row".

(11) Seltherathem; meaning "The dragons of the high sky." Pronounced "sell" like you sell goods, "there" like I'm going over there, "ah" like a doctor tells you to say ah, and "thém" like look at them, but put emphasis on the E. "Sell-there-ah-thém."

Okay, for all you blindshipping and puzzleshipping fans who are thinking that this is sooo yaoi, I want to say that _no it is not!_ There is no yaoi in his story, at least not with Atem/Yami and Yugi. Their treatment of each other is perfectly understandable in my opinion. After all, they did share a body for at around four years with their souls connected in a way that no one will ever or can ever understand. No one understands what kind of relationship two people whose very souls are connected would have.

No, the part with Yugi rubbing Atem's wings in his back was not making him aroused. It is like a dog getting its belly scratched. It is extremely comfortable and feels good. The reason Atem's wings started to come back out is because it felt good to atem and he wanted Yugi to pet his actual wings, but then he remembered that he doesn't need them out at the moment, so he asked Yugi to stop. I told you guys, no yaoi!

I made the words Tiathro and Seltherathem using an eleven name generator table on a website whose link is on my profile if you want to check it out. I don't know how correct it is but it's easy to use.

I think of the Kame Game Shop having three floors. 1st floor being the store itself, 2nd floor composed of the living room and the kitchen, and the 3rd floor with the bedrooms, bathroom, and a laundry room.

This is the longest AU story chapter I have ever written, as of July 17, 2011. I have no idea if the others will be this long or not. I never realized that this was going to be this long, but I'm not complaining. It makes me feel better having long chapters than just short ones. I am proud to say that this story is 4,938 words long, not including the summary, rating, etc. I put in the beginning and the stuff I put at the end, just the story.

If you haven't seen Steel Magnolias, you should definitely watch it. It is a hilarious, sad, sweet movie. Dolly Parton is in it.

At the bottom, those of you reading this before I add other chapters may notice that I have "Updated:" at the bottom even though this is the first time I've out on the chapter. I put "Updated:" at the bottom when I have already finished a chapter and go back to really change the story. I had come up with something new for later in the story so I had to go and change _a lot_. I just wanted to explain for you.

Also, important question here! Do you guys care if I change this and make Yugi a girl. Because, I don't want to give anything away, but later in the story, something is going to happen where 99.99% of all puzzleshipping and blindshipping fans are going to say it's _**major**_ yoai when it's really not. So, I'm really close to deciding to just make Yugi a girl so I won't have to argue with people because — I'm sure you're wondering 'why not just make it yoai?' — but I it is NOT going to be yaoi! So, should I, boy or girl?

**News:**

Okay, I have recently created a LiveJournal account where I will be posting some of my stories that I'm not ready to start adding here on . So, if you want a peek at some stories that I may or may not continue, but have at least come up with, check it out. A link is on my profile.

* * *

><p>Started: Saturday, March 05, 2011<p>

Finished: Monday, July 18, 2011

Updated: Tuesday, July 19, 2011


	4. Explanation

**Summary**:

In ancient times, a human was chosen to become the Dragon King. Now watch, as his story unfolds.

**Disclaimer:**

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! It belongs to Kazuki Takahashi.

**Story Rating:**

Rated T for some violence, minor coarse language, or minor suggestive adult themes.

**Chapter Rating:**

Rated K+ for minor action violence without serious injury or mild coarse language.

**Notes:**

_Flashback_

'Thoughts'

* * *

><p>Dragon King<p>

Explanation

* * *

><p>Atem was a dragon.<p>

The sentence vibrated in Yugi's mind over and over again.

"But . . . you were born in Egypt." The look he gave Atem was pleading, pleading that Atem would go, 'Ha ha! I'm just kidding. I'm not a dragon!' But no such response came.

"Yes, I was," Atem agreed, looking at Yugi calmly.

"Then what do you mean you're a dragon?" Yugi yelled at him.

Atem's eyes widened as he stared at Yugi. After all, Yugi had never yelled at him before. In anger, anyway. He finally sighed. "I promised you I would explain, but I must take you somewhere safe," Atem glanced back in the direction of the city, "and away from prying ears."

Getting fed up with not getting his answers Yugi glared at him and asked, "And where exactly is that?"

Atem's determined expression faltered as he turned to look at the ground. "There is only one place I can think of where you can be safe, but it is also more dangerous."

"And where is that?" Yugi asked.

Atem looked back a Yugi with a sad expression. "I _should _take you to Eyllisna (1), the home place of the Tiathro and Seltherathem. As I said, taking you there is taking you right into the enemy's home turf. They will have a huge advantage. Even though I am familiar with Eyllisna's terrain, you are not."

"Will they really find us?" Yugi asked softly. "No matter where in the world we go?"

Atem looked over at him with a sad and apologetic look. "Yes. They can sense my magic at all times in this world. But in Eyllisna, they can not. Yugi," Atem's hands clenched. "I don't know what to do."

For a while, Yugi didn't answer. Two minutes passed before he spoke. "Let's go."

"What?" Atem's eyes flashed up to meet Yugi's. The determination in those amethyst orbs stunned him. "Yugi," he whispered, stunned.

"Come on," Yugi said as he stood, pulling Atem up as well. "Let's get going then."

Atem just stared at him with no expression on his face.

After a few minutes as watching Atem stare at him, Yugi said, "What?"

Atem just chuckled and closed his eyes. "I had forgotten how . . . unusual you are, how brave." He opened his eyes as he chuckled again. "I'm beginning to remember just how brave you are."

Yugi pretended to glare at his best friend. "You're the dragon here, and you're calling _me_ unusual."

Atem just laughed at him. "Sure am!" When he had calmed down he asked, "Are you sure?"

"I trust you."

"Sometimes you are too trusting as well." Atem rolled his eyes as he spoke. With a sigh he said, "Are you ready then?"

"Yes," Yugi said as he picked up his bag again. He started to walk off in, what Atem thought was, a random direction, when he stopped at turned back to Atem. "How are we getting there again?"

"I shall create a portal that we can pass through." Atem tried to keep his amusement from showing in his voice, but, judging from Yugi's glare, failed miserably. Atem walked forward until he was beside Yugi, and waved his hand through the air.

For a second, Yugi though that Atem was picking on him again, because nothing happened. Then, slowly, a glowing circle of light appeared in front of them, before expanding until there was a eight foot tall, eight feet wide portal in front of him.

"Show off," Yugi muttered as Atem walked toward the portal.

Atem laughed, having heard him quite well, and stopped just before the portal. He held a hand out toward the portal. "After you," he said as though he was an early 1990s gentleman.

"Thank you, kind dragon," Yugi said, playing along while messing with Atem, which earned him a light glare. Slowly, Yugi walked forward until he stood one step away from the portal. He looked back at Atem, the question in his eyes.

Atem had no problem reading the question out those eyes. "Trust me, Yugi."

With a nod, Yugi turned back to the portal, squeezed his eyes shut, and stepped through.

The first thing he noticed was the sound.

The second thing he noticed was the smell.

And the third thing he noticed was that he was on a cliff.

"AH!" he screamed as he quickly moved away from the edge of the biggest cliff he had ever seen. He was distracted when Atem stepped through the portal and, with a wave of his hand, made the portal disappear. He glared at the man and yelled, "You could have warned me!"

Atem looked at him, exasperated. "You have faced monsters, psychos, cranky men, and the lord of darkness himself without a second glance. I didn't think a waterfall would bother you."

"Waterfall?" Yugi asked as he looked to his right, and saw the source of the noise. A waterfall, so large and vast it made Victoria Falls look like a small trickle. (2) Yugi could barely see land on the other side.

Atem chuckled when he saw Yugi jaw-dropped expression. "In all my years, I have never seen a waterfall as wide or as tall as the Verraeal." (3)

"That's the name of it?" Yugi asked as he stepped up beside Atem, and stared at the river with his friend. "What does it mean?"

"It's name means 'The God's Peace' when translated directly. The legend is that long ago, the land was void of life, because there was no water, because the river didn't exist. So, the gods created this river as a kind of peace treaty, and would keep the river forever flowing as long as the people remained faithful to them."

"Oh," Yugi murmured as he stared at the water. Then he remembered what Atem had said about it being the widest and tallest waterfall. His curiosity getting the best of him, Yugi carefully crept to the edge of the cliff. He didn't worry too much about falling though. Atem would make sure he didn't go splat at the bottom.

Finally, he crouched down at the very edge and peered down.

"Oh my fucking god!"

Yugi never had been good at telling distance in miles, but he was pretty sure that the ground was _several_ hundred miles down. If he fell, it would be a _very very long_ drop to the bottom.

"Yugi," Atem scolded. "When did you start swearing?"

"Forgive me for getting a tiny bit shocked at the size of this freaking waterfall!" Yugi looked back down, and watched the water fall that large distance. "How tall is this thing?"

"I do not have the faintest idea," Atem shrugged as he walked to the edge and looked down as well. "I once thought about seeing for myself, but decided against it. It would take me several hours to fly down this thing, and several more to fly up."

"I don't doubt you on that, I promise." Yugi looked at Atem with a smile before looking back down to see where the ends of the waterfall lead to.

Apparently, the waterfall continued on into a river. At this height, the river should be a tiny little line, or maybe even invisible, but a wide river curved throughout the land below and continued on into the distance.

Then Yugi noticed the other major landmarks.

The one that was the closest looked like a huge flower. It kind of reminded Yugi of a sunflower, because it had a flower head. (4) It had eight petals spreading around the head.

He also noticed a large golden bridge that crossed over the river. If it looked big from where Yugi was then it had to be big.

There was one building that looked like a big gray dome, but it had big holes in it spread out across the surface.

In one of the bends of the river, there was a large, Yugi couldn't tell if it was a building or not, octagon with lots of smaller trapezoid spread out inside of each face of the octagon. In the very center of the octagon, there were four squares each with a path or a road to connect them together.

In one big patch of land, there were little shapes. Yugi couldn't pick out what they were, but he assumed that it was a city. Lots of these were spread out around the other big landmarks, but they were small and spread out, which made Yugi think that it must be the largest city, and probably the capital, if they had such things in this world.

And finally, in the far distance, straight slap in front of Yugi was an enormous building. It looked like a castle. It had several different spikes, maybe towers, and different sections so that the entire castle was spread out over a wide distance.

Atem pointed to each landmark as he spoke.

"The flower is a rock formation is the Koehoro (5). It means 'Earth's Flower.' The Tiathro (6) nearly destroyed it when they explored the land, but when a rather . . . unique Eyllisnan (7) happened to take a glimpse of the stone from the air, he rushed to have the stone preserved. Now it is a treasure to the Tiathro and Seltherathem (8)."

"The bridge is called Arya, 'The Golden Bridge.' (9) It was a tribute to the gods, so it was covered with a metal similar to gold, only not near as soft and much more durable."

"That big dome shaped building is the home for the Seltherathem, the Airathem (10), called the 'Dragon Home' naturally. It has those holes in it so that the dragons can get in on the ground and in the air."

"The big octagon is, well, it's essentially a big pen. It's where the livestock are stored. They call it Mairah (11) or 'Death to the Beast' because it's where they slaughter the livestock and store it for emergencies."

"That is Naihar or 'Wise Oak.' It is the largest city in Eyllisna and is one of the few places where the Tiathro and Seltherathem can live together without conflict."

"And the palace over there is Ferarretyn, the 'Heaven's Champion.' (13) It was named that when a war ended between the Tiathro and the Seltherathem. The war ended because the Tiathro leader would not surrender, no matter the odds. His determination gave the Tiathro victory and since then, there have been no wars."

Atem turned to Yugi and smiled. "Any questions?"

More preoccupied by the on-slot of so many foreign words, Yugi didn't even bother to attempt to think of a question. "Nope. I'm good."

"Alright," Atem said with a laugh and turned away from the land in front of him. "Follow me."

It took Yugi a second to comprehend his words. "Wait. What?" He stood and turned to Atem. "Where are we going?"

"Away from the river and away from the Ferarretyn and away from the river. We shall be safer in the forests."

"Okay, I can understand why we need to get away from the river, but why the palace?" Yugi asked, but he followed Atem anyway. "If they have a palace, they must have some kind of ruler, right? Why don't we just go to him or her for help?"

"Because there is no ruler on the throne."

"Why?" Yugi asked, confused. "Did they stop with monarchy? They got a democracy or something?"

"No," Atem sighed. "They simple have no ruler at the moment."

"At the moment?" Yugi asked, and Atem flinched as Yugi noticed the key words. "Then where is he?"

Atem didn't answer.

"Yami! Answer me!"

"It's not important. No one at the palace can help us," Atem didn't even glance at Yugi while he spoke. He simply stared ahead. "Besides, the palace is full of Tiathro. If I were to bring you there they would kill you."

"Yami," Yugi scolded as he ran ahead of Atem and stopped in front of him, making Atem stop. "Why aren't you answering me?"

Atem stared at him. Yugi had that expression on his face. The one where he looked like he was trying to look into his very soul. But there was something else as well on the boy's face. In his eyes, Atem could see a small amount of sadness brewing.

Atem sighed before looking around. He smiled when he could make out the shape of a cave about a hundred feet away. He turned back to Yugi and said, "Come with me."

Yugi followed after Atem as the elder led the younger to the cave. Yugi almost asked Atem to watch out for bears, then caught himself as he realized that there were probably no such thing as bears here.

Thankfully, though, the cave was cold and empty, with no signs of any recent visitors. Still, Atem walked deep into the cave before he finally sat against the wall.

He looked up at Yugi, who remained standing, and patted the spot next to him.

Yugi slowly sat down and looked at Atem with an all-right-tell-me-what-the-fuck-is-going-on expression.

Atem took a few deep breathes before smiling sadly at Yugi. "Alright, ask me anything."

It took Yugi a moment before Yugi could decide _which _of his questions to ask first. "Are you human or a dragon?"

Atem chuckled. "I am neither human nor dragon nor elf nor man nor woman. I am one of a kind."

Yugi shook his head, not in denial exactly, but more in shock. "So, we're you ever human?"

"Yes," Atem answered with a smile. "I was turned into this creature when I was thirteen years old, in human years anyway. Time moves faster here."

"Why?" Yugi asked softly.

"Because the different branches of the Seltherathem argued and argued over which one should rule Eyllisna. There are six different branches for six different elements: fire, water, earth, metal, wood, and wind. Of course each branch wanted one for their own to rule, so there was never a compromise. Finally, an older, wiser dragon proposed an idea for who would be the next ruler. He proposed that they take a human and 'gift it', as they put it. Turning it into a creature neither dragon nor human, and stronger than both."

Yugi had no trouble figuring out just who they had chosen.

"That's why they were after you, isn't it?" Yugi asked as he began fitting together the puzzle. "That's why you have wings and eyes are slit like a reptile's! My God, Atem, why did you bring us here if that's exactly what they want?" Yugi was yelling at him by them. He stood as he yelled the last question at Atem.

Atem looked back at him with a sad smile. "Because I must rule again, but I must also keep you safe. I couldn't protect you in your world, where they can track me at all times, but I can protect you here until it is safe enough for me to send you home."

"You're not sending me home!" Yugi turned and walked to the other side of the cave. He leaned forward and rest his forehead on the cold rock. "Why are you so stubborn? Why do you always try to get rid of the people who just want to help you?"

Yugi didn't hear Atem move, but, suddenly, Atem was there leaning his own forehead against the back of Yugi's shoulder. "I just don't want you to get hurt. You are my closest friend in the world, Yugi. I just want you safe."

"Figures," Yugi muttered, and heard Atem chuckle behind him. "Five thousand years in a puzzle, four years in me, and then five years in the afterlife and you still haven't changed. You would think at least one of those would have some influence on your personality, but _no_. You're still just as stubborn as always."

Atem laughed as he laid his chin on Yugi's shoulder, wrapping his arms around Yugi's chest. "My dear friend, you are just the same way."

Yugi rolled his eyes, but didn't answer.

"So, Atem said after a few seconds of silence, "anything else you want to ask?"

"I got one," Yugi said hesitantly.

When Yugi didn't continue, Atem prompted, "Yes?" but Yugi still didn't say anything. "You can ask me anything."

"I know," Yugi reassured. "I'm just trying to figure out how to say it . . . Yami, do you remember when you appeared in my dream?"

"When I tried to warn you, yes." There was a pause before, "Why?"

"You referred to yourself as 'bearer'. What did you mean by that?"

"Oh, that's what you mean." Atem released Yugi and turned to lean his back against the wall of the cave beside Yugi and crossed his arms. Yugi mimicked him, leaning against the wall, but didn't cross his arms. "When I sealed myself away in the Millennium Puzzle, I didn't not want my other life here in Eyllisna to have an affect on the spell I used to seal Zork. So, I sealed my human memories into the tablet you saw and my memories of this realm into another tablet."

"Back then, I ruled as Pharaoh during the day, and at night, I ruled here in Eyllisna," he explained seeing Yugi's confused expression. He continued, "That is why I had no memory of this when I memory was returned in the Memory World. It was stored in a different place. I don't know why or how I'm back and have _all_ my memories back, but I know it must be to rule here again. If the gods wish it, then I must."

"So, which one is the real you?" Yugi asked softly, his gaze down toward the ground.

Atem reached out and grabbed Yugi's closet hand, his right hand, and held it up to his own heart. "I am human no longer, Yugi., but I promise you, I am still me. Not matter whether I wings or tail, I am still me. It is the same heart you feel beating within me." He smiled at the boy. "The halves that make up me are growing ever closer. I am remembering more details about my human life, and my human self is remembering about this world."

"Yugi," he said seriously, "during the day, I will be panicked and scared as my human self slowly remembers. Please, you must keep me calm and prevent me from doing anything too stupid." He smirked. "Which, as you can guess, is likely to happen."

Yugi burst into laughter at the comment. As he calmed down he asked, "Why do you change at morning and night?"

Atem hummed before he answered. "It is only until I am whole again. I am usually like this," he gestured to his eyes and wings. "I believe I am my human self during the day because that is when I ruled as a human, and at night—"

Yugi finished his sentence for him. "—you turn into this you because this you ruled at night." Yugi looked at Atem with a mocking smirk. "You are _messed up_."

This time, Atem burst into laughter. "I already know that, trust me. How do you think I felt for a few weeks after I was changed? I pretty much just sat in my room all day, in both worlds."

Atem suddenly blinked, and his expression became blank. He turned toward the opening of the cave, Yugi turning also, and saw the glow of the sun over the horizon. "The sun comes. I will turn back soon."

"I'll take care of you, I promise," Yugi said earnestly, looking deep into Atem's eyes.

Atem looked back. "I know you will."

Then, the sun burst over the edge of the land, its glow shining on the two. Yugi had to cover his eyes at first, but uncovered them when he heard Atem drop to the ground.

"Yami!" Yugi yelled as he dropped to his knees next to Atem. "Are you okay?"

"Don't—worry," Atem managed to gasp. "N-Nor-_mal_!" The last half of the word cam out as a scream as Atem started to scream in pain.

Yugi could only watch, knowing he could do nothing but simply be there for his friend.

Shortly, though, thankfully, Atem stopped screaming.

"Yami?" Yugi asked softly.

Atem slowly opened his eyes and looked up at Yugi. His eyes were back to normal, well, Yugi's normal. "Yugi?" he asked softly. He sat up and looked around at their surroundings. "Where are we? Last I remember, we were walking home and—"

Yugi cut him off. "Everything's fine, Yami, I promise. Please, you must be tired. Go to sleep." He smiled as best he could at the moment to try to convince Atem that everything was fine.

Atem's eyes softened. "Alright Yugi." Atem rested his head on his arms, and immediately, the snores started.

Yugi just sat there watched Atem sleep and worried.

He worried about how he was going keep stubborn Atem in the cave all day.

* * *

><p>(1) Eyllisna; meaning "Land of the Ancients." Pronounced "eh" like someone goes eh?, "ya" like how in Spanish double L's make the ya sound, "is" just like that is awesome, "nah" like when you disagree with someone you go nah. "Eh-ya-is-nah."<p>

(2) Victoria Falls is the widest waterfall in Africa and is one of the widest in the world.

(3) Verraheal; meaning "The Gods' Peace." Pronounced "ver" rhymes with air, "ah" like a doctor tells you to say ah, "L" like the letter L. "Ver-ah-L."

(4) The flower head is what is commonly referred to as the flower part of the sunflower when it is actually made of lots of small flowers.

(5) Koehoro; meaning "Earth's Flower." Pronounced "ko" rhymes with hoe, "eh" like someone goes eh?, "or" like you ask sweet or unsweet tea, and "O" like the letter O. "Ko-eh-or-O."

(6) Tiathro means "magic sage"; "tia" meaning "magic" and "thro" meaning "sage". Pronounced "tea" as in the drink tea, "oth" like moth without the M, and "row" like you row a boat. "Tea-oth-row".

(7) The name of a person from Eyllisna. Like a person from America is an American. I just added an N at the end. Pronounced the same except that instead of the "nah" at the end, it's a "nahn" rhymes with dawn. "Eh-ya-is-nahn."

(8) Seltherathem; meaning "The Dragons of the High Sky." Pronounced "sell" like you sell goods, "there" like I'm going over there, "ah" like a doctor tells you to say ah, and "thém" like look at them, but put emphasis on the E. "Sell-there-ah-thém."

(9) Arya; meaning "The Golden Bridge." Pronounced "are" as in are you ready for dinner, "E" like the letter E, and "uh" as in when you go uh I didn't do it. "Are-E-uh."

(10) Airathem; meaning "Dragon Home." Pronounced "air" like the word air, "uh" as in when you go uh I didn't do it, "ah" like a doctor tells you to say ah, and "thém" like look at them, but put emphasis on the E. "Air-uh-ah-thém."

(11) Mairah; meaning "Death to the Beast." Pronounced "my" like how the Yu-Gi-Oh! character Mai and "rah" like the Egyptian God Ra. "My-ra."

(12) Naihar; meaning "Wise Oak." Pronounced "nai" like the Japanese word nai and "har" rhymes with tar. "Nai-har."

(13) Ferarretyn; meaning "Heaven's Champion." Pronounced "fair" as in fair play, "ah" like a doctor tells you to say ah, "ret" rhymes with pet, and "yen" like the Japanese currency. "Fair-ah-ret-yen."

I'm going to put the meaning of all the foreign words here at the end, at least for a few chapters, so that you guys can, hopefully, be able to remember what they mean. I still have to keep looking up the meaning of some of them so don't feel bad if you can't remember right off the bat. Let me know though when it gets annoying.

No, I did not get the name Arya from _Eragon_. On the website I used for the names "Ar-" means "gold" and "Ya-" means "bridge." No plagiarism.

Oh, you guys are probably wondering why I keep calling the pharaoh Atem when Yugi calls him Yami. Well, Atem is his real name, so I call him Atem when not in dialog, but I like to believe that after Atem got his memory back, he told Yugi to call him Yami, not Atem.

I can't remember if I put this on the last chapter or not, but whatever. If I did I'll say it again. I am rewriting this story but instead of Yugi, there will be a female OC named instead. I have titled it _Dragon King—OC Version _so it's hard to miss. I had mentioned somewhere that Yugi would not be in that story, but while I was rewriting Chapter Three: "Attack" I had an idea, you'll have to read to find out, but anyway, Yugi is in it. I haven't finished that chapter because when I was rewriting I have added about ten pages to the chapter, so check it out!

If you guys have any other questions, legitimate ones, don't ask how the story ends, that I haven't covered, ask me in a review and I will either edit this chapter or add it in the next, depending on if I can fit it in to the next.

And I am sorry for all the unfamiliar words. Honestly. Trust me, it was confusing for me two.

* * *

><p>Started: Tuesday, July 19, 2011<p>

Finished: Friday, July 29, 2011


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